A 16-year wait for a World Cup title had boiled down to seconds.

In a one-sided but grueling contest, the Spanish matadors had tamed the Argentinian bull in the final.

After the match, the entire Spanish squad stood at the champions’ podium, waiting to lift the golden trophy for just the second time in their country’s history.

Among them were two second-generation immigrants: Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams.

Both were born in Spain after their parents immigrated there in hopes of a better life.

It was perhaps fitting that in a final that took place in a country built on the backs of immigrants, two sons of immigrants emerged victorious.

However, when Spain captain Rodri hoisted the trophy to kick off the celebrations, the number of second-generation immigrants on the stage had increased to three.

The name of the third immigrant – Donald Trump.

Trump’s World Cup

Yes, US president Trump is a second-generation immigrant from his maternal side.

His mother, Mary Anne MacLeod, had immigrated to the US from Scotland in 1930 at just 18, escaping poverty, and began working as a domestic servant in New York.

Sixteen years later, she gave birth to her fourth child Donald, who went on to become a real estate tycoon, a media personality, and then a two-time US president, whose entire election campaign for his second term was centred around deporting immigrants.

He had vowed to deport 15-20 million immigrants in five years if he came into office, and according to a recent report published by The Guardian, he has deported 600,000 immigrants in less than two years.

Under Trump, entering the US has also become more difficult. The US has imposed full travel bans on 19 countries, implemented a visa bond for travellers and even introduced a mandatory social media screening before entry.

For 39 days, Trump’s US was the converging point of football fans from all over the world as the primary hosts of the FIFA World Cup 2026, alongside neighbours Mexico and Canada.

Doubts loomed over what impact these restrictions would have on the tournament, which were vindicated when Somalian referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan was denied entry, for supposed association with members of a terror organisation, accusations Artan vehemently denied.

The plight of the Iranian team was much worse. They had to travel to the US, endure extended interrogation at the airport during entry, play the match and board a return flight for Tijuana, Mexico inside 24 hours of entry for their opening two group stage matches.

Thousands of fans from around the world were denied entry for the World Cup despite purchasing tickets.

Such incidents went against the idea of inclusivity that the World Cup preaches, but Trump and his coterie didn’t care.

The US president proudly brandished the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize Trophy, posed with the World Cup trophy at the Oval Office and after the final, handed out the trophy to the victorious Spain side, refused to get off stage and stood alongside the squad as the confetti went off.

He shared the stage with a Spanish team, whose biggest star and the one who assisted the World Cup-winning goal are both second-generation immigrants, just like him.

The tale of Nico and Yamal

Right after the trophy celebration, Nico walked up to the stands, took off his World Cup winners’ medal and handed it to a woman in the stands.

The woman was his mother, Maria Artuer, who along with his father Felix Williams, had left Ghana in 1994, completed an arduous 2000-mile journey across the Sahara Desert, lied about being fleeing the civil war in Liberia to take political asylum in Spain.

His mother endured the gruesome journey while being seven months pregnant with his brother Inaki Williams. Eight years later, Nico was born.

His mother worked as a domestic worker and commercial cleaner, his father lived in London for nearly a decade, working low-wage maintenance jobs, to support Inaki and Nico, who are both now professional footballers.

Nico, a left-winger known for his speed, had also handed over his medal after winning the Euro with Spain in 2024.

When the media asked him why, he replied, “I run very fast, but I can’t run as fast as my mother. Because she once escaped death and crossed the Sahara Desert from Ghana to Spain to become who I am today. I gave the medal to my mother because she deserves it more than anyone else.”

After winning the World Cup, his brother Inaki, who represented Ghana at the same tournament, penned an emotional message for his sibling on social media.

“You've won the World Cup. You've made history. But beyond the trophy, thank you for this: you've made millions of immigrants like our parents proud that their future children might one day experience what you've experienced, and you've made millions of Spaniards empathize with our story, which isn't just ours but the story of all those who leave everything behind for a better future,” Inaki wrote.

Yamal’s story follows similar beats.

His paternal grandmother Fatima Romani sneaked onto a bus in Morocco and arrived in Catalonia by herself.

She could neither read nor write, but worked low-paying jobs day and night to save money and gradually smuggle her children from Morocco to Spain. His father Mounir arrived in Spain at nine years of age.

His mother Sheila Ebana arrived in Spain from Guinea with his grandfather, also hoping for a better future.

Sheila fell in love with Mounir and at just 16 years of age, gave birth to Yamal.

Yamal grew up in Rocafonda, a working-class, immigrant community. Both of his parents worked multiple shifts to make ends meet. And even though they separated when Yamal was three, they co-parented him and ensured that he would be able to pursue his dreams of playing football professionally.

Their perseverance paid off as Yamal has now become a global star at just 19 years of age.

Yamal also proudly displays his roots. In the final against Argentina, he wore a headband with an inscription ‘08304’ – the postal code of Rocafonda.

Yamal has had to shoulder the expectations of an entire nation while still being a teenager. But the winger did not consider it as pressure, considering what his parents have done for him.

“My mother had me when she was 16, and my father had to hustle and go out on the streets to put food on the table. Now that's real pressure. I just try to play my game and make all Spaniards happy,” he told Spanish radio station Cadena SER during the World Cup.

In New Jersey, as Nico and Yamal rejoiced as world champions, it was a win for every immigrant who risked their lives and toiled their whole lives just to provide a better future for their children.

It was the manifestation of the old American dream – coming from nothing to becoming the best in the world.

This idea of the American dream is what had made America great in the first place. It was this dream that had made Trump’s mother abandon her homeland and arrive in the US, and her sacrifices led to Trump reaching the heights that he has.

Trump is now actively working to crush this very idea in the name of making America great again.

But on Monday, Trump had no choice but to clap and honour two immigrant boys who had fulfilled their American dream.